The Jewish Ethicist: Giving Notice

Do I have any duty to stay on until my boss finds someone else?

Q. I'm not really enjoying my work in a store, but I am reluctant to leave the boss in a lurch before the busy season. Do I have any duty to stay on until he finds someone?

A. The usual rule in Jewish employment law is that an employee may quit any time he likes without penalty. This is considered an essential expression of human freedom; the Torah tells us that the children of Israel should not be slaves, as God commands "To Me the children of Israel are servants; they are My servants, for I took them out of the land of Egypt" (Leviticus 25:55), (1)

This principle does however have one reservation and one exception. In the time of the Talmud, the usual work situation was day labor. The Talmud provides as we stated that a worker is allowed to quit even in the middle of the day, but many examples demonstrate that in most cases workers would not quit without a compelling reason. Many authorities state that if the worker quits in midday only in order to make a higher wage elsewhere, that is not even considered an expression of freedom and he is liable for breach of contract. (2)

Contract or local custom probably provides for a standard notice period. For jobs like store work which involve minimal training, this is often about two weeks. If you don't have a compelling reason to quit suddenly, you should stay on the customary notice period.

An exception to the rule is when leaving actually causes the employer a loss. In this case, the employee is actually not allowed to quit – again, unless there is a very compelling reason.

But it is important to understand that Jewish law gives a very narrow definition of what it means to cause a loss. It does not mean that the employer will lose money because he doesn't have an employee on hand; it means that the loss is actually caused by the original work agreement being breached.

The mishna gives the example of a cleaner who has workers put clothes into a special caustic solution, which damages the clothes if they are left in too long. If the worker leaves in the middle it causes the employer a loss, because if the worker hadn't taken on the commitment, the employer wouldn’t have put the clothes into the solution in the first place.

Another example is a band for a wedding reneging on very short notice; if the first band had declined then another one would easily have been found, but now that the first one agreed another cannot be found so quickly without offering a meaningful bonus. (3)

It would be unusual for this to apply in the store. A possible example would be if the store bought an unusual amount of inventory based on an informal commitment or understanding that the worker would stay on; if the boss had suspected you might leave he would have bought less stock.

Another relevant consideration here is that your job is not particularly skilled. There are comparatively few people sufficiently skilled to perform at weddings, and few laborers in the time of the Talmud knew how to work with a caustic bath. So quitting suddenly truly put the employer over a barrel. But many people can be trained to do a respectable job in a store so there is no reason to think that by quitting you will leave your boss open to extortion by prospective hires.

If you merely don't like your job, as opposed to having some compelling and urgent reason for quitting, you should observe the customary or contractual notice period, usually two to four weeks for less skilled jobs. If as a result of your taking the job the employer entered into some commitment that requires your participation to fulfill, you should be careful not to leave him over a barrel. But in your case you are probably merely requiring him to go about the annoying but totally normal process of interviewing and hiring a new salesperson. This is one of the ordinary headaches that go with being a proprietor, and you – a mere employee – are not ethically obliged to take this headache away from him.

About the Author

Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir is Research Director at the Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem (www.besr.org). He studied at Harvard, received a PhD in Economics from MIT, and rabbinic ordination from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate. Prior to moving to Israel, he worked at the Council of Economic Advisers in the Reagan administration. Rabbi Dr. Meir is also a Senior Lecturer in Economics at the Jerusalem College of Technology and has published several articles on business, economics and Jewish law. He is the author of the two-volume, "Meaning in Mitzvot (Feldheim), and his Aish.com columns form the basis of the "Jewish Ethicist" book (ktav.com).

I’ve been dating a young woman for the past two years and we are starting to think about marriage. The problem is that she is not Jewish. I would want her to convert, but in a way where there would be no doubt about its validity, so that we and our kids don’t have problems later on. How do you recommend that I proceed?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

I appreciate your desire to do the right thing and proceed in an authentic way.

The process of conversion is challenging and involves a process of a year or two. This benefits the person converting, to ensure he fully appreciates the responsibilities he is taking on.

According to the Code of Jewish Law (Shulchan Aruch), a valid conversion replicates the experience at Mount Sinai of 3,300 years ago, when the Jewish nation accepted the Torah. For your friend to convert, she must:

believe that Judaism is the true religion, not just accept it by default

study what it says in the Torah

commit to observe all the Torah's commandments

Further, a conversion must be motivated for the sincere purpose of getting close to God and His Torah, not for ulterior motives. Thus, your friend would have to embrace Judaism and the Torah for its own sake, not in order to marry you. She should have the exact same desire to convert even with you entirely out of the picture.

If your friend studies Judaism and feels it is right for her, she would then approach an Orthodox conversion court and explain her situation. The court would then decide if it feels she is a sincere candidate for conversion. If yes, she would begin the lengthy process of studying and practicing to become a true convert.

Of course, to have a successful relationship, you will also need a high level of appreciation and commitment to Judaism. Perhaps you could begin your own study program to discover how Torah values enhance our lives and form the bedrock of civilization.

You should endeavor to live near a Jewish community which has adult education programs, rabbis you can consult with, Shabbat hospitality programs, etc.

In 1273 BCE (Jewish year 2488), Moses completed his farewell address to the Jewish people, and God informed Moses that the day of his death was approaching (Deut. 31:14). Amazingly, the anniversary of Moses' completing his teaching coincides with the date in 1482 of the first printing of the standard format used for Jewish Bibles today: vowel signs, accents, translation (Targum), and Rashi commentary.

Lack of gratitude is at the root of discontent. In order to be consistently serene, we must master the attribute of being grateful to the Creator for all His gifts. As the Torah (Deuteronomy 26:11) states, "Rejoice with all the good the Almighty has given you." This does not negate our wanting more. But it does mean that we have a constant feeling of gratitude since as long as we are alive, we always have a list of things for which to be grateful.

[Solomon] was wiser than all men (I Kings 5:11), even wiser than fools (Midrash).

What does the Midrash mean by "wiser than fools"?

A man of means was once a Sabbath guest at the home of the Chofetz Chaim. He insisted upon paying the sage in advance for the Sabbath meals - an insulting demand. To everyone's surprise, the Chofetz Chaim accepted the money.

After the Sabbath the Chofetz Chaim forced the guest to take the money back. He explained, "Had I refused to accept the money before the Sabbath, the thought that he was imposing upon me might have distracted from the man's enjoying the spirit of the Sabbath. Although it was foolish of him to feel this way, I wished to put his mind at rest."

Not everyone thinks wisely all the time. Some people have foolish ideas. Yet if we oppose them, they may feel they have been wronged. Insisting on the logic of our own thinking may not convince them in the least. In such instances, it may require great wisdom to avoid offending someone, yet not submitting to his folly.

By accepting his guest's money, knowing that he would return it to him after the Sabbath, the Chofetz Chaim wisely accommodated this man's whim without compromising on his own principles.

A wise person may be convinced by a logical argument, but outsmarting a fool truly requires genius.

Today I shall...

try to avoid offending people whom I feel to be in the wrong, without in any way compromising myself.

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